16-17 Toronto Raptors Futures Betting Odds

The Raptors finally broke through last year in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, knocking off both the Pacers and Heat in dramatic 7 game series, before putting up a legitimate fight against the eventual champion Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals, losing in 6 games. It was a great year to be a Raptors fan, as they finally turned some of the regular season success from the past few years into a solid post season run.

The expectations for the team are high after last years performance, but I wanted to see what the oddsmakers had to say about the Raptors chances for the upcoming season.

To Win NBA Championship

The Raptors are still not being given much of a shot at winning the NBA title, and that’s not a surprise. With the acquisition of Kevin Durant in the offseason, the Golden State Warriors have one of the most convincing super teams in NBA history and come into the season with odds of 1.80 to win it all (or above a 50% chance at the title). Then you have your defending champion Cavaliers, lead by the best player in the league in Lebron James at odds of 4.50. When you have star studded teams like that it’s no wonder that the Raptors are still long shots to win the title.

To Win Eastern Conference Championship

It may be a bit of a surprise though that the Raptors are only the third favourites to win the East. The Boston Celtics are being given a real legitimate shot with odds of 5/1 at Bodog (but 8/1 at SportsInteraction.com). Of course, the Cavs are the team to beat and currently sit with odds of 1.45 to win the East yet again.

To Win Atlantic Division

The Celtics are in the Atlantic with the Raps, which is where this really becomes interesting. The oddsmakers seem to think it’s going to be a coin flip as to whether the Raptors will repeat as Division Champs for the 4th consecutive season, or whether the Celtics will take over the division crown. The odds are actually leaning towards Boston, with the Celtics currently listed at odds of 2.07 at Sports Interaction. In fact, SIA is the only sportsbook I’ve seen where the odds for the Raptors are shorter than those for Boston.

Regular Season Wins Over/Under

The Raptors won 56 games last year and if they repeated that performance they would easily cover their wins total for the season. That said, the Raps did go 14-2 in their division and with all of the love the Celtics are getting before this season and due to some of the improvements the Knicks have made you have to think those divisional games will be more difficult this season.

This isn’t a prediction article, I just wanted to outline the different futures bets you can make on the Raptors for the upcoming season and the associated betting odds. That said, it’s very interesting to see what the oddsmakers think of the Raps heading into the season.